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Itaebi Fellstaff
High Raven Itaebi Fellstaff is an elf-kin Ardent Shadowhunter who doggedly pursues Mikoa and becomes one of the primary antagonists of the series. She is a minor celebrity in Bruhinn, where she is called "Ghuulslayer." Itaebi is a Dwellerkin (a so-called "blue elf"), with a pale blue hue to her skin. Her straight hair is dark blue, with streaks of grey. Her hair is so long that it hangs down past her waistline; she keeps it tightly bound in a single tail, using cords. Her eyes are a flat silver -- almost white. Her pointed ears stand higher than the top of her head, often described as "shark fins." Her ears are very emotive -- they pivot, fold, and turn like wolf's ears. She has many piercings along her ears and one pierced nostril. On formal occasions, she wears jewels dangling from lightweight chains running between her piercings, and elaborately patterned makeup and eye-shadow. Less formally, she wears studs and paints black bars under her eyes, to reduce glare from her cheeks. She is slightly taller than a tall man-kin, slim, feminine, and lithe -- repeatedly described as a "thread of blue smoke rising from the floor." She is relatively old for an elf-kin. She has a large scar on the back of her neck, near the base of her skull, where she was lashed by a razored whip from a mor'ghuul. Hair does not grow along the scar, but the spot is covered by other hair. Her manner is stern and judgmental. She has a penchant for moral platitudes and long, self-righteous monologues. She is racist toward Wylderkin (pink elf-kin) and her calico subordinate, Furion Windtrail -- she finds them undisciplined, reckless, amoral, and unintelligent. She is ambivalent toward man-kin. Outwardly, she shows supreme self-confidence, utterly ignoring the approval or disapproval of others. Inwardly, she feels responsibility, stress, loneliness, and occasional self-doubt. She worries that the world has become complacent, and that she is the only one who understands the true, ever-present danger of ziraduun and woe. She let her guard down once and was almost decapitated by a ghuul. That experience humbled and frightened her; she refuses to be caught off-guard again. She has no friends and is generally unpleasant company. Itaebi is a mundane, with no magical gift whatsoever. Through the Ardent, however, she has access to plentiful magical artifacts, which she uses often. She is a vicious combatant and skilled with her thin, lightweight sword. She is also an expert horseman, capable of directing a mount using only her knees. Her rank among the Ardent is High Raven -- the highest of the Raven Shadowhunter ranks. She is very well educated in magical philosophy and is regarded as one of the highest authorities on dream magic in the entire Ardent. When she was younger, she popularized the use of dreamcatchers to disable grim dreamers -- but this technique has recently fallen back out of practice. Magic both fascinates and disgusts her. She has personally hunted, captured, and killed countless ziraduun. She laments that her lifelong success as a huntress may soon put her "out of business" when she finds and kills the last ziraduun. Without shadowhunting, she would be hopelessly bored and purposeless to the point of severe depression. Moreover, she fears the enemies she cannot see more than the ones she can. At the beginning of Book 1, Itaebi is in Bruhinn to track and kill Khazr the Red Gambler, a suspected shadowcaster. She is sidetracked by Aera in Snow Anchor. After killing Aera, she takes possession of the Red Glass Rose for a short time. In the Grim Dream series, Itaebi acts as antagonist to Mikoa by pursuing her throughout Landfall, trying to bring her to justice. Throughout the entire series, Itaebi is characterized by her elusiveness, survival instincts, bulldog perseverance, cunning, and ability to operate in secret.